


carry you/carry me

by loadgalax



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Captain Ennoshita, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-10
Updated: 2015-06-10
Packaged: 2018-04-03 17:38:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4109365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loadgalax/pseuds/loadgalax
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the Spring Tournament, Chikara gets a package from Daichi, and his friends are only a little worried about him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	carry you/carry me

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MamaSuga](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MamaSuga/gifts).



> hello, and happy summer! i've never written any of these characters before, and i think it came out a little more pensive and emotional than funny, but i hope you enjoy it nevertheless!
> 
> (also, i tried to make the timeline work out, but it is a little wonky, so you might have to suspend some disbelief, sorry!!)

The sun sprinkled through the dusted curtains and the breeze from Chikara’s open kitchen window stirred the air around his face as his fingers touched cardboard. He ran his hands over the box on his counter, eyes half closed and mouth drawn. It felt just as mid-spring should in the house; the air outside was breathing a collective sigh of relief, and the crickets outside droned just loudly enough to keep his thoughts quiet.

Well, mostly. The seam on the cardboard had been cut carefully, almost reverently. It hadn’t been lavishly decorated or anything, just a plain box. Daichi wasn’t one for theatrics, especially when Chikara shouldn’t even have this gift until next year.

Chikara felt himself smiling, softly. Daichi didn’t need paper or bows to make his message clear.

“We believe in you.”

As if in a trance, he fit his fingers into the groove of the box, pulled, and -

“Ennoshita!” The muffled shout rang from outside, and was followed immediately by a feverish banging on his door, as if Kinoshita was prepared to bang it down right then and there. Chikara winced at the noise and sighed, before folding the cardboard back down.

“Calm down, give me a second,” he called out with a yawn that was almost prophetic of the excitement about to barge into his house, then crossed the living room to the door.

Kinoshita was on him before he even finished getting it open. “Can we see it? Daichi dropped it off, right? He said he was going to, right?” Narita hung back, quieter but still grinning as Kinoshita threatened to send Chikara stumbling backwards with the weight of his hands on his shoulders. Kinoshita was easily the most excitable of the three of them, but his eyes were sparkling in a way Chikara only saw rarely, full of sincerity.

Their smiles stirred a warmth in him. There was a lot to be said, he thought, for trust.

“Yeah, yeah, it’s...” He paused, then stepped backwards to let the two of them pass. “It’s in here, he brought it over yesterday.”

Kinoshita flew past, with Narita surprisingly close behind. “God damn-” Chikara pulled the door closed then raced after them, “Don’t-”

He found them in the kitchen, the box spread apart on the counter. Narita and Kinoshita held it between them, their matching smiles bright enough to rival the sun outside. Kinoshita turned to Chikara with a teasing eyebrow wiggle. “Don’t what? Touch your things without asking first... captain?”

The orange number 1 gleamed in the streaming sun, bold and bright. It seemed to command the room, its presence demanding recognition.

Even after all the times Chikara had pulled it from its package, all the times he had felt the fabric in his hands and held it up to the light when he was sure the house was empty, it still took his breath away.

The awed silence was broken by Narita’s playful, quiet voice. “So how does it feel?”

They both turned to him, eyes expectant, and Chikara wondered briefly if Daichi ever felt like this. Like he was being stared down by, well, a flock of wild crows.

He gave a smile and reached for the back of his neck. “Well... It’s hard to say, I guess.”

For that, he received a punch in the shoulder.

“Hey-! Come on!”

Kinoshita just snickered, and threw the jersey in his face.

“Show some respect, would you?” Chikara grumbled, unballing it and smoothing out the imaginary wrinkles.

"Not if our captain doesn't respect us."

Chikara turned to stared at him, eyebrows knit in confusion. Kinoshita gazed back, unwavering, his mouth still quirked in a smile but his eyes strangely serious. Narita glanced back and forth between the two of them, nervous fingers tapping silently on the counter, and Chikara guessed he didn't know where Kinoshita was headed either.

Chikara took a breath. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Ennoshita. We've known each other for years." Kinoshita's voice was hard, but not cruel. "You think... you could tell us what you're really feeling?" Then, it softened. "You've never... you've never been shy about this kind of thing with us before."

His voice tapered off, and the drone of the insects outside filled the silence. Chikara bit his lip, before settling onto the counter with a sigh. "I kind of meant it, though." He paused, and Narita fidgeted.

"Ennoshita, you really don't have to share if you don't-"

Chikara huffed out a laugh, which snapped Narita into silence. Kinoshita had been right, and now it weighed down on him, thick as the summer air. For this team, a lack of trust was equal to a lack of respect. The number 1 still felt like something he couldn't fill; it fit his body but it felt hollow around the edges, like something he still had yet to grow into. He supposed this hesitance reflected that, too.

He wondered quietly if Daichi would be ashamed of him for thinking this, before mentally slapping himself out of it. Doubt, doubt, doubt. He doubted himself  _for_ doubting, and the more he looked at his predicament, the more he realized the only way to move forward was to take the first step out of that cycle.

"No, no, come on, Kinoshita's right," he sighed with a quick, embarrassed smile. "I just... still can't believe it's mine, you know?" Kinoshita and Narita gave the jersey another glance, and Chikara continued. "It feels... like I'm not sure how to carry it just yet." He bit his lip. "And I have to make my own way of it, I guess. Daichi's not going to be around to pull me up."

He felt Kinoshita's eyes on him instantly. 

"You have us."

Those words, so bold and simple, hung in the air. They weren't the scolding Chikara expected, but they felt almost like a blow.

Except, the weight of them, after the sting had passed, gave him something to hold onto. Something to land on, something to fall back onto from his shaky perch; could a captain soar, without these hands here to catch him when he needed them most? An image flashed in his mind: Daichi bleeding and smiling weakly, and a quiet whisper before the game began again. "Carry the team, Ennoshita."

He had. He could.

Something rolled down his cheek, hot and wet. God, crying again - without thinking, he pressed the fabric in his hands to his eyes.

The strangled snicker from Kinoshita broke him out of his stupor, and he parted himself from the jersey with a yelp, "Oh my god - I." Kinoshita was doubled over now, laughing more at Chikara's reaction now than the action in the first place, and Narita was giggling now too.

Blushing bright and uselessly dabbing the tear stain against his own shirt, Chikara gave a flustered whine, "I did _not_ mean to do that." Then, "You are enjoying this way too much, Kinoshita."

"You had to break it in somehow!" Kinoshita managed to say through his laughter, and the tension in the room had dissolved entirely, blown away by the crisp spring wind.

"Feels kind of silly." Chikara said in a low voice, pressing his mouth to the fabric again.

That brought out a dramatic groan from Kinoshita, and Narita took a step forward, and clasped a firm hand around Chikara's shoulder.

"Ennoshita." His voice was warm, reassuring. "It's _not_. Like, this whole thing? It might be just volleyball to us, but it's more than that to you. It always has been." His hand squeezed gently. "Don't sell yourself short."

 A moment of silence, and then, it was like a dam had burst, a block released. Pressure that had build up for months, finally escaping, and Chikara's cheeks were wet again, his shoulders trembling and his embarrassment making his movements even shakier. He couldn't believe he was doing this in front of his teammates, and yet -

Their hands were solid, caring. Kinoshita stepped forward, then, Chikara gave him a quick nod, took him into a hug. "Come on, Ennoshita." Narita followed suit.

"Shit, I'm so sorry you guys-"

"Don't even," Narita chuckled, patting his arm. "What are we here for?"

They stood there in the quiet, breathing in unison until Chikara was able to piece himself back together, or close enough. He gave a shuddering sigh and straightened up, drying his face. "Thanks..." He pressed himself a little closer in their embrace, before pulling away.

He could swear the room was a little warmer, but even with the heaviness of the air, it was nothing unpleasant. It felt like the stillness after a storm, a gentle quiet, and well, a promise. A promise of a number of good days to come. Kinoshita and Narita's smiles were bright as sunspots, even with the gentle sparkling of Narita's eyes and Kinoshita's slight fidgeting over the few seconds of intimacy he wasn't really sure what to do with, but Chikara appreciated anyway.

"Thank you."

Kinoshita looked up. "Well, you know." He grinned. "We believe in you."

And those words seemed to spark the air. Chikara smiled.

Then, Kinoshita clapped his hand together. "Well!" He hopped and sat on the counter, and Chikara rolled his eyes - did he think he owned the place? "I think it's time we made some real break plans! We only have a few more free weeks, after all."

"The team's getting together for unofficial practice on Wednesday."

Kinoshita dipped his head backwards with a groan, and Narita hid his smile behind his hand. "Well, _yeah_ , but I meant, besides volleyball. I mean, we're all still friends here, _captain_."

Chikara was grinning now. "And what did you have in mind?" he asked.

Kinoshita pretended to think, then stuck his finger in the air, triumphant. "How about, we try all the ramen places in the city!"

Crossing his arms, Chikara warned, "Not if I have to pay!"

Then, Narita's hand was slapping his back, and he heard a playful laugh, "Support your teammates, captain!"

And, Chikara realized as he watched his two friends sprint out the door, their voices ringing through the clear day air, he was starting to believe he could.

 


End file.
